1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a well known wagering game called “Craps” and more particularly to an improvement thereto referred to herein as a “FIRE BET™”.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Craps is a casino wagering game which is enjoyed for its fast pace and excitement. The standard rules of play for Craps are very well established, so that there is no need to inform those having ordinary skill in the art how Craps is played. However, as a prelude to discussion of the present invention, it is useful to provide a short overview of the standard rules pertaining to a Craps “Pass Line” bet.
Referring now to FIG. 1, Craps is played on an elongated Craps table 10, having a horizontal table top 12 surrounded by a sidewall 14. The playing surface 16 is provided with a lay-out 18 in the form of indicia indicative of the play of Craps. The playing surface 16, may for example be a felt material having the indicia of the lay-out 18 imprinted thereupon. The lay-out 18 includes indicia indicative of a pass line bet area 20, indicia indicative of a point number area 22 (a plurality of squares having, respectively, therein the numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 and 10), and indicia indicative of a proposition bet area 24.
In the play of Craps according to the standard rules, every player gets a chance to throw the dice. The person throwing the dice is called the “shooter”. The shooter must make a “pass line” (referred to also as a “line”) wager (bet) by placing a selected number of chips representing the value of the wager within the pass line bet area 20. The shooter then throws the dice for his or her initial toss, referred to as the “initial come out”. If a 7 or an 11 was thrown, then a Pass Line wager wins and is paid even money; this outcome is referred to as a “natural winner”. If a 2, 3, or 12 was thrown, then a pass line wager loses and is forfeited; this outcome is referred to as a “natural loser”. If a number is thrown other than a 2, 3, 7, 11, or 12, then that number establishes the shooter's “point” (this point is either a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10). The shooter's point is then marked by a dealer with a white circular point marker 26 called a “puck” (in FIG. 1, the puck is placed by way of example on the 5 number because the shooter has, merely by way of example, tossed a number 5). Once a point has been established, the shooter will continue to throw (that is, roll or toss) the dice until he or she either: 1) again throws the point number again (referred to as “making the point”), or 2) throws a 7 (referred to as a “seven out” or “sevening out”). If the shooter “makes the point”, then any player who made a pass line wager wins even money, and the shooter throws the dice for a repeat come out (this toss is not to be confused with the “initial come out”). If, however, the shooter “seven outs”, then any player who made a pass line wager forfeits the money wagered, and the shooter forfeits his or her turn and passes the right to dice throwing to the next shooter (in clockwise order). This next shooter will then throw an initial come out after bets have been placed, as described hereinabove.
While the game of craps played according to the standard rules is exciting and enjoyable to play, what remains needed in the art is an improvement in the form of a simply executed proposition wager which provides the bettor the possibility of a high pay-out relative to the value of the bet.